Many federal judges are criticizing the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010, aimed at narrowing the gap between sentences for convictions involving crack and powder cocaine, for being less than fair. Under the presumption that laws do apply retroactively without a clear statement from Congress, the law appears to only reduce [...]
As the government shifts its focus in the wake of the financial crisis from corporations to individuals, it brings with it a new investigatory tool previously reserved for organized crime and narcotics prosecutions: wiretaps. Though insider trading is not a specified offense authorized by Title III, the government argues it [...]
Dean of the law school at the University of California, Irvine, Erwin Cherminsky, and associate professor of law at Hofstra, James J. Sample, published an Op Ed piece in the New York Times yesterday arguing that the Supreme Court should limit campaign contributions in judicial elections. Cherminsky and Sample assert [...]
In the wake of controversy over Yale University’s response to the Delta Kappa Epsilon march–where students chanted, “No means yes! Yes means anal!”–the national debate over campus safety has been inflamed once again. Activists argue that a school’s failure to ensure a safe environment for all students is a violation [...]
This story is not law-related in any way, but it’s truly heartening nonetheless. Michael Santos, a middle blocker from Team Vôlei Futuro in Brazil, was subjected to waves of verbal slurs during a recent match. As he served, the crowd chanted kept screaming “Bicha! Bicha! Bicha!” which means “faggot” in English (you can [...]
The Maryland legislature voted this week to guarantee in-state tuition to illegal immigrants, and Democratic Governor Martin O’Malley is expected to sign the bill. Undocumented students are not eligible for aid or scholarships, so tuition breaks offer these students possibly their only hope of attending college.
This January, Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal told the Tucson School District to end its Mexican-American studies program or lose $15 million in annual state aid under a new law banning ethnic studies programs. Passed in May of last year, Arizona HB 2281 prohibits school districts and charter [...]
CNN reports that on April 12, Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and John Kerry (D-MA) introduced legislation that would create a “Commercial Privacy Bill of Rights” in the United States. Link to Text of the Bill. The crux of the legislation forces internet companies like Google, Facebook, Twitter and others to [...]
Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli’s office said in a memo dated Tuesday that proposed rules that would require private and faith-based groups, such as Catholic Charities and Jewish Family Services, to allow gay parents to adopt children “does not comport with applicable state law and public policy.”
Google recently settled with the Federal Trade Commission over charges of “deceptive privacy practices” relating to its controversial social networking “Buzz” feature. The settlement between Google and the F.T.C.—first of its kind—requires Google to initiate a “privacy program” under which it must submit to regular privacy audits for 20 years and accept fines for future privacy violations. The F.T.C. hopes that this settlement will serve as an example and lead to the adoption of the practices articulated in it throughout the web to protect users’ privacy.
Copyright © 2013 Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review. All Rights Reserved.
